Hajj Officials Discuss Problems of Pilgrims of Holy Shrines and Pilgrimage Companies
During the meeting of the Planning and Coordination Council of the Supreme Leader's Representative Office and Hajj and Pilgrimage Organization, the problems of pilgrimages to the shrines of the Atabat Aliat and the status of pilgrimage companies active in the field of Hajj and Pilgrimage were reviewed.
According to the Hajj information base, the meeting of the Planning and Coordination Council of the Supreme Leader's Representative Office and the Organization of Hajj and Pilgrimage was held today under the chairmanship of Hojjat al-Islam Seyed Abdolfattah Navvab, the Supreme Leader's representative for Hajj and Pilgrimage and the head of Iranian pilgrims.
At the meeting, Head of the Supreme Leader's Office in Iraq Hojjat al-Islam Hossein Behjati rendered a detailed report on the problems of the caravans dispatched to the holy shrines in the fields of accommodation, transportation, health and treatment, nutrition and how to transport pilgrims inside Iraq and performing pilgrimage in Najaf, Karbala, Kadhemein and Samarra.
Also speaking during the meeting, Deputy Head of Hajj and Pilgrimage Organization for Atabat Hojjat al-Islam Sohbatollah Rahmani elaborated on the measures taken to solve these problems within the framework of the new Atabat plan.
Hojjat al-Islam Navvab, meantime, asked Hojjat al-Islam Rahmani to prepare and present a report on the measures taken to solve the problems that were raised in this meeting within a month.
He also called on Hojjat al-Islam Rahmani to take the necessary measures to solve the problems with the tools you have and the companies that perform well be strengthened and those who act weakly to be removed.
Also speaking during the meeting, Deputy Head of Hajj and Pilgrimage Organization for Hajj and Umrah Akbar Rezaei presented a report on the investigations and actions taken in the field of accommodation for the upcoming Hajj, and said that the Hajj and Pilgrimage Organization is trying to provide the basis for informal negotiations with Saudi hoteliers and to take appropriate steps to reduce costs in the area of accommodation.
The meeting continued with a report by Deputy Head of Hajj and Pilgrimage Organization for Development of Management and Resources on the status of pilgrimage offices in the country.
Stating that there are currently 1,725 pilgrimage service offices across the country, he said that since 2001, a number of offices have had their licenses revoked, and 89 offices have suspended their activities, and some others have not renewed their licenses.
He also presented statistics on the suspension and non-renewal of pilgrimage offices in major provinces of the country, and mentioned the increase in costs as the most important reason for the suspension and inactivity of pilgrimage offices by saying that if one cannot meet the conditions for the operation of these offices, one will lose this capacity.
Hojjat al-Islam also emphasized the continuation of the activities of pilgrimage offices in the country and asked the relevant authorities to review the conditions of the activities of pilgrimage offices, taking into account what existed in the past and respecting the current conditions, and plan and submit their proposal to this council within next 45 days.
